INM: O'Brien is 'dissident shareholder'

O'Brien: built his stake in INM to more than 22% earlier this week. Photograph: PA

The simmering hostility between the Independent News & Media chief executive, Anthony O'Reilly, and Denis O'Brien erupted into open warfare today as the company's board branded the Irish telecoms tycoon a "dissident shareholder".

Today's move by INM, which owns the Independent and Independent on Sunday, dramatically increases the hostility between leading shareholder O'Reilly and O'Brien.

In a statement coinciding with the Dublin-based group's annual results today, the INM board accused O'Brien, who earlier this week built his stake in the newspaper publisher to more than 22%, of trying to destabilise the company.

In a strongly worded attack, the board also claimed O'Brien had "made a series of personalised, misleading and inaccurate attacks on the company, its board, management, strategy and governance", while continuing to grow his stake in INM.

"The board of INM believes that Mr O'Brien's comments and actions regarding INM, its board, management, strategy and governance, are designed to destabilise the company and run counter to the principles of a fair and orderly market for INM's shareholders," the company added.

"Consequently, the board is now formally declaring Mr O'Brien a 'dissident shareholder', who consistently voices disagreement with the company's strategy while continuing to buy shares and who is not acting in the best interests of all stakeholders. The company will be responding to, and interacting with, Mr O'Brien on that basis henceforth."

INM has been angered by O'Brien's attacks on its strategy, which have included a call to sell off the loss-making Independent titles.

O'Brien's business rivalry with O'Reilly dates back more than a decade, but the antagonism between the two camps has grown increasingly bitter as O'Brien has built up his stake in the company over the past two years.

In today's statement, the company also made reference to a letter written by O'Brien to INM five years ago.

"In a letter which appears to reflect Mr O'Brien's possible motives towards INM, he wrote to the company on July 3, 2003, alleging that INM had 'spent the last seven years trying to destroy my reputation' and that he was 'waiting for the appropriate time to rectify the damage'," INM said.

"In the light of this, we believe it is reasonable to question Mr O'Brien's emotive reaction to the legitimate news coverage that he has received in various Irish INM titles, presumably in relation to the Moriarty Tribunal.

"This tribunal is investigating whether any corruption occurred in the awarding of a mobile phone licence to Mr O'Brien's company.

"Since prematurely disclosing his initial investment in INM in 2006, Mr O'Brien has made a series of personalised, misleading and inaccurate attacks on the company, its board, management, strategy and governance.

"While continuing to buy shares in the company, Mr O'Brien's unilateral and irresponsible attacks have included, among other things, the commissioning and issuance of a so-called 'report' purporting to offer expert opinions and insights into the business and governance of INM.

"That document, which has been shown to be without merit, was published despite the fact that neither Mr O'Brien nor the report's author ever spoke to the company, its senior independent director, nor any single member of the company's management team or board of directors.

"In fact, no person connected with INM has ever been consulted about any aspect of this report - which seems wholly inconsistent with the report's stated aims and objectives."

INM said O'Brien's criticisms "would appear to be borne out of self-interest, with no proper regard whatsoever for the company, its assets, its stakeholders or the millions of people who have come to enjoy and respect the company's many leading media brands around the world".

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